NEWARK— The Devils’ first postseason opponent is one they know well and one they’ve played well this season. So, the good news: New Jersey swept the season series against the Tampa Bay Lightning and the last win on March 24 sent them skidding to the finish, with Tampa Bay managing only seven points over their final eight games.

Now, the bad news: All three games were won by a margin of only a single goal and the Devils were outshot all three times. While the Devils have played well in one-goal games this year, one bounce of the puck and things could have gone differently.

With that said, here are five things to know about the Lightning as the Devils get ready to face them on Thursday in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Offensive depth

(Photo: The Associated Press)

The Devils are a top-heavy team when it comes to scoring. They’ve managed to find some secondary scoring in recent games, but the top line of Taylor Hall, Nico Hischier and Kyle Palmieri still provide the bulk of the offense.

With the Lightning, it’s a different story.

The league’s highest-scoring offense has scorers littered throughout all four lines. Five players have scored 20 or more goals and Nikita Kucherov finished the regular season with 100 points, third in the league. Brayden Point scored 32 goals and Steven Stamkos scored 27.

Tampa Bay leads the league in 5-on-5 scoring but also has the league’s third-best power play. The Devils are a good penalty killing team, one of the top-10 in the league, but staying out of the penalty box will be key.

These are two high-scoring offenses who want to use their speed to get out on the rush. This series could be an entertaining shootout with a ton of fireworks.

Leadership

Stamkos missed the final two games of the regular season with a lower-body injury but is expected to be back in time for Game 1 of the first round. However, told the team website that he may not be 100 percent for the playoffs. There’s no doubt the Lightning are a better team when their longtime leader is on the ice.

Stamkos, an elite two-way sniper who can make plays in all three zones, finished the regular season with 86 points (27 goals, 59 assists), factored into 33 scoring plays on the power play and was a plus-18 in 78 games.

Goaltending

(Photo: The Associated Press)

In his first year as a starter, Andrei Vasilevskiy had a record-breaking campaign. With a franchise-record 44 wins, he became the first Tampa Bay goalie to lead or tie the league in victories, tying for No. 1 with Winnipeg Jets’ netminder Connor Hellebuyck.

He also set a franchise record with eight shutouts, tying Nashville’s Pekka Rinne for the league-lead. Six came on the road.

To establish yourself as a No. 1 goalie, you have to prove that you can handle the workload. Vasilevskiy proved that he can handle it. The next test is proving that he can handle it in the postseason.

Weakness

The Devils need to stay out of the box but they might want their opponents to spend a little more time in there. Tampa Bay’s power play is easily the biggest weakness on a team that doesn’t have too many glaring ones.

The Lightning is ranked 28th in the league with a 76.1 penalty kill percentage. It’s the second-worst among all playoff teams and has gotten even worse since February.

Head coach

Lightning coach Jon Cooper has his team focusing on defense more than ever.(Photo: associated press)

Jon Cooper has guided the Lightning with a steady hand since his hiring in 2013. He’s the second-longest tenured NHL head coach, behind Chicago’s Joel Quenneville. A former public defender, he’s known as an open-door players’ coach, yet still demands accountability.

He’s been able to reinvent himself and adapt his coaching style to the style of the players he’s coached throughout the years. As the game moved to a game based on speed and skill, Cooper adapted to that and was able to implement a system that allowed his speed players to shine.

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Three players who will be key in the Devils’ first-round Stanley Cup Playoff series against the Tampa Bay Lightning.